Judge Jeffrey banged his gavel down hard on the wooden bar top. "Silence in court," he yelled angrily, his face flushing red.
He leaned forward pointing his gavel at the defendant. "One more outburst like that Mr Lynn and I will hold you in contempt of court."
"But this is bullshit," Tom Lynn shouted back as he shook his head in dismay.
Judge Jeffrey banged his gavel again.
"I warned you Mr Lynn. You leave me no option but to find you in contempt of this court. The penalty is 30 days. Bailiff take him ..."
"What the fuck, you've got to be kidding me!" Tom yelled in dismay.
"Sixty days, Mr Lynn," the judge yelled back at him.
"You can't be serious, this is a joke." Tom replied angrily.
"Ninety days, Mr Lynn. And I assure you this is no joke. We take our law very seriously here in Deerfield County. Do you want to continue because I can keep increasing your sentence if you so wish."
Emma Lynn looked on horrified. This couldn't be happening, it was a nightmare ...
* * * * * * * *
Five days previously ...
"Come on Emma it's time to go, are you still not ready yet?" Tom Lynn yelled out from the bottom of the stairs. He was exasperated by his new wife. Young and beautiful she may be but her one flaw was that she had absolutely no concept of time. But he loved her dearly despite her apparent tardiness.
Up in their bedroom Emma heard Tom shouting to her. "Nearly," she called back, a wide smile on her face.
She was so excited. They were about to embark on a long held dream of theirs. It was something they'd discussed many times during the long, cold winter nights when they'd cuddled together in front of a blazing fire. The nights that always seemed to end up with them making love on the rug as the logs on the fire crackled and spit in the grate.
They had met just under two years ago, set up on a blind date by mutual friends. It had been an instant attraction. Tom at twenty eight years of age was five years older than Emma and was relatively good looking - a trifle nerdy perhaps but in a good way - and was witty, charming and friendly.
As she thought back to that first time she caught a glimpse of herself in the wardrobe mirror.
She was a striking looking twenty three year old woman. Not classically beautiful; she felt she had too many imperfections for that; she was still stunning especially with her make up on. Her long red hair cascaded in waves down past her shoulders to frame her delicate oval shaped and lightly freckled face.
Her perceived imperfections were her high cheekbones and what she thought was a slightly crooked nose. Of course they weren't. Those imperfections only added to her beauty, a look that was completed by twinkling green eyes and pouty red lips, which always seemed to be parted and which made men just want to kiss them.
Of medium height; she measured 5'6 in her stocking feet; her slim, toned body had all the right curves in all the right places, especially her ass which was full and round and just begged to be groped when clad in tight jeans. But it was her breasts that were the best thing about her body. They were exquisite. A perfect shape and size they seemed to point away from each other just enough to still give her an impressive cleavage. A nice full 34D size was just right for her body to carry although they did look bigger than that due to her slender build and flat stomach.
A final look inside the wardrobe confirmed she had packed everything she needed. She slid the door shut and turned to fasten her suitcase.
"You know, most people would have packed the night before."
She looked up to see Tom stood in the doorway, a broad smile on his face.
"Well I'm not like most people," she pouted in reply as she heaved the bag off the bed. It thumped to the floor with a dull thud.
"Well you got that right and just what have you got in here?" a bemused Tom asked as he walked over and picked up the case.
"Things I need, you know lingerie and stuff," she teased, tilting her head in a coquettish manner.
Tom laughed as he struggled out the door. "Come on then, let's get a move on."
With a final glance round the room, Emma followed him out. They were embarking on a delayed honeymoon, having married two months previously. It had been purposely delayed as Tom had needed to finish up some exams relating to his work. These had cropped up after their final wedding plans had been drawn up and just couldn't be altered. So they had taken the decision to forego the honeymoon until now, both hoping that the expectation would be greater and the experience all the better.
And not for them was it to be the customary two to three weeks on a Caribbean island. No, they had planned a three week road trip exploring middle America, especially wanting to visit all the places that were off the usual tourist trails.
* * * * *
They were five days into their trip when they pulled off the main Interstate. As they cruised down the arrow straight but hugely undulating rural road they passed a sign.
"Welcome to Deerfield County, please drive safely," Emma read out loud as they flashed by a sign on the side of the road. Today they were on their way to a little known museum, which purported to contain artifacts from the old wild west. The old guy at the motel where they'd stayed the previous night had recommended it to them.
"You must see it, you have to go," he had croaked. Emma thought he must have been at least a hundred years old. As they had nothing better to do and they were after all trying to find the 'real' middle America they decided to go take look.
"Town up ahead," Tom said as he eased his foot off the gas. They drove slowly into town.
"Welcome to the town of Deerfield, Home of the Deerfield Raiders." Emma read out loud from another roadside sign.
"Must be the high school football team," Tom said with a smile.
"Yeah," Emma replied as she looked out of her window, "it's awfully quiet, isn't it? I don't see anyone around and there's no traffic either."
Tom looked from side to side. "You're right, how bizarre."
He cruised around a bend in the road. "Ah there you are, there's your traffic" he said, nodding his head towards a yellow school bus that was parked up ahead of them, it's rear red lights flashing.
Tom came to a stop behind it. He looked around. "Where's is everybody, I can't see a soul."